May 1997
The new Secretary of State for Health, Frank Dobson, confirmed the Labour party's manifesto commitment to abolish the internal market.
Having promised a new drive to improve public health in their manifesto, the Labour Party appointed the first Minister of Public Health.
8 December 1997
The new Labour government set out its intentions for NHS reform and announced programmes to improve public health.
1998
The passage of three Acts of Parliament established devolved legislatures in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales.
February 1998
The government focused on the need to narrow health inequalities and improve the health of local populations.
April 1998
The Department of Health commissioned an evaluation of 40 GP commissioning pilots to test new approaches to primary care-led commissioning.
11 June 1998
The Act restricted the amount of capital assets that local authorities could take into account to determine eligibility for residential accommodation charges.
1 July 1998
The government set out, and invited comments on, their plans for re-organisation of the NHS to tackle quality variation.
July 1998
During his comprehensive spending review speech, Gordon Brown announced a programme to improve support for children in the early stages of their life.
